Community Outreach Tools
Letter to Legislators/Governor From Center Directors
USE YOUR OWN WORDS! Please customize this letter as much as you can. The more personalized details you include, the more influence your letter will have with your legislators.
If the teacher received a TEACH scholarship or vouchers for classes, please encouarage the teacher to send their own thank you note to their legislators and Governor for funding those programs.
To find contact information for your state representative and state senator, go to www.legis.state.pa.us.
To contact the Governor:
The Honorable Edward G. Rendell
225 Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17120
You can also email him using this online form:
http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Governor/govmail.html
Dear :
I am pleased to share with you a wonderful achievement of our teacher, NAME, as she/he earns his/her [CDA/Associate’s/Bachelor’s] degree this year from [name of college/university.] His/her achievement will benefit not only the children in her class today, but children for years to come.
In order to provide quality early childhood education, our teachers must be prepared. The Office of Child Development and Early Learning’s Reach and County Risk Assessment for FY 2008-2009 demonstrates how far Pennsylvania’s investment in early childhood education has come in reaching not only children but also educators. For example, through Teacher Education and Compensation Helps (T.E.A.C.H) scholarships: 79 recipients have earned an associate’s degree; 20 recipients earned a bachelor’s degree; and 32 recipients earned a CDA Credential in 2008-2009 alone.
[Share information on how your teacher earned his/her CDA/degree. Did he/she work full-time while going to school? Did he/she receive a TEACH scholarship or vouchers? What is the teacher’s long term plans? Have you seen an improvement in the teacher’s performance because of this opportunity? Have other teachers been motivated by this teacher?]
In our quest to ensure all children are provided with quality education we cannot forget about those who are instructing them. When our teachers have the educational background they need they are better equipped to lead our classrooms. Several studies have found that the presence of teachers with a bachelor’s degree specialized in early childhood education leads to better outcomes for young children.
The correlation between educated teachers and early education is indisputable. As with any profession, continuing professional development is necessary to refine skills and gain updated knowledge. We must continue to support all our educators as they seek further advancement so that they may give the next generation of learners the education they deserve.
Please join me in congratulating [name] for her hard work and commitment to our children’s future. I invite you to visit our program and see his/her performance first hand!
Sincerely,
Letter to Legislators From Parents
The Purpose of this letter is to:
• Explain the governor’s budget proposal for early childhood education programs
• Educate legislators on how PA’s early education programs are making a difference in their communities
• Encourage legislators to learn more about the success of and need for these programs in their communities
You can find contact information for your legislators at www.papromiseforchildren.com or www.legis.state.pa.us.
You can also copy and paste your customized letter in the PA Promise action alert at http://paprom.convio.net/2-15-10
PLEASE CUSTOMIZE IN YOUR OWN WORDS. The more you customize this letter, the more value it will have to your legislators. Share your own experiences and reasons for supporting early education. If you’d like to handwrite a note instead of using this letter, please do.
Dear :
I am writing to encourage you to support continued investment in early education.
Earlier this month, the Governor released his budget proposal for 2010-2011, which provides funding to increase the number of children served in Early Intervention; sustain the number of children served in Child Care Works, Keystone STARS, Nurse-Family Partnership, Parent-Child Home Program; and reduce the number of children served in PA Pre-K Counts and Head Start Supplemental.
Pennsylvania’s early education programs are vital to the success of our communities today and tomorrow. [share examples of how access to early education in your community is important to keeping parents working, keeping businesses going. For example, you could share how the budget impasse made it very clear in your community that child care is a necessity when parents had to find other ways to care for their children while at work. ]
Quality early education is key to our children’s success in school and in the workforce. For example, for the second year in a row, nearly every child who participated in Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts showed age-appropriate or emerging age-appropriate skills at the end of the program year. [share examples of how kids who are receiving a quality early education experience are making progress, entering kindergarten prepared and excelling in kindergarten and first grade.]
Pennsylvania has come so far to help more of our young children receive early education services. Since 2003, Pennsylvania has created Early Learning Standards from birth – 2nd grade that help guide teachers and parents in their teaching and observation of children, so our children make progress and are ready for school. Pennsylvania has developed an Early Childhood Education Career Lattice so teachers can continue to increase their own education and stay in the early education field for a lifetime. And Pennsylvania has created best practice programs that are recognized across the country. Please help us keep up this momentum.
I would appreciate the opportunity to show you how Pennsylvania’s early education programs are making a difference in your district. [invite them to visit a local early learning program or attend a local early education event.]
We need to invest in early education in any economy. Please support continued investment in Pennsylvania’s early education continuum.
Sincerely,
Letter to Legislators From Parents Regarding Pre-K Counts
Dear [Legislator]:
In the proposed budget for fiscal year 2010-2011, there is a projected cut of 68 children from the PA Pre-K Counts program. As a parent of a child enrolled in the Pre-K Counts program, I urge you not to pass a budget containing these or other cuts to Early Childhood Education. This program has been successful in many ways, including:
•The program is reaching our most vulnerable children.
Children affected by risk factors such as living in low-income families, learning English as a second language, or having special needs often enter school without all the academic and social skills they need to succeed unless they receive quality early education. Approximately 95% of children enrolled in Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts are affected by at least one risk factor, 77% are affected by two or more risk factors.
•Children are making excellent progress in Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts and entering kindergarten ready to learn.
Nearly every child (99 percent) showed age-appropriate or emerging age-appropriate proficiency in literacy, numeracy, and social skills after attending the Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts program. School Districts report that Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts children entered kindergarten with age-appropriate skills, were more prepared for kindergarten than their peers, and are meeting development expectations throughout kindergarten.
•Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts teachers and classrooms are high quality.
Approximately 80% of lead teachers have bachelor’s degrees, and 77% either have their ECE certification or are working toward ECE certification. With an average of 16 children per classroom with at least one lead teacher and one teacher aide, Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts is exceeding recommended best practices.
I have seen great improvement in my child [share a personal story about your child].
Again I ask you, DO NOT vote for a budget which contains cuts to Pre-K Counts or other programs.
Thank you,
[Your name]
Alternate Letter to Legislators From Parents
Dear Senator (Senator’s Name),
I am a parent at . It is essential that my employer be assured that I am dependable and focused on the responsibilities of my job. There is nothing more important to me than my child. The choice I make for the care and education of my child directly affects my ability to do my job.
I know the state budget process is very difficult this year. However, a further budget stalemate threatens our economy, our businesses, our families, and the Commonwealth’s children. I depend on my child’s early learning program, not only because it allows me to work, but also helps me prepare my child to enter school ready to learn.
If this budget stalemate continues, the program my child attends may lay off staff or close. My options are limited.
Please end this budget stalemate. Early childhood investments support our economy. Pennsylvania’s early childhood programs work to keep families employed, to provide businesses with a dependable and skilled workforce now and into the future.
Please support the Governor’s proposal for Pre-K Counts, Child Care, and the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program. Thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Another Letter to Legislators From Parents
Please try to personalize this letter as much as you can.
Dear [Legislator]
Pennsylvania has made great strides in recent years in funding high-quality early education and care for our children. State funded programs such as Child Care Works, Head Start, Keystone STARS and Pre-K Counts promote high-quality learning environments. These programs are true investments in Pennsylvania's future. They create and promote successful students, successful communities and are good for the Commonwealth as a whole. However, we need to do more.
Child Care Works keeps Pennsylvania's working families working and helps them afford quality child care for their children. The annual cost of child care for infants and toddlers is double the cost of one year's tuition at one of Pennsylvania's public colleges or universities. It is important that low-income working parents have the assistance they need to remain employed and to ensure their child is being cared for in a quality setting while they are at work.
Pennsylvania's nationally recognized Keystone STARS program is making a difference. Keystone STARS is improving child care quality and helping parents make good child care choices. Evaluation reports show that Keystone STARS is reversing a negative trend in child care quality. Participating programs show higher quality than at the inception of STARS, and programs in Keystone STARS have higher quality than the Pennsylvania average.
We support the Governor's continued commitment to the improvement of child care programs through Keystone STARS and increased access to child care subsidies through Child Care Works. However, even with this investment, more than 8,000 children remain on the child care subsidy waiting list. We urge the General Assembly to support an additional investment in next year's budget that will reduce this waiting list.
Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts is providing high-quality pre-K to approximately 11,000 children across the Commonwealth who are at risk of education failure - giving them the tools they need to succeed in school and life. Research overwhelmingly backs public investments in high-quality pre-K - investments that can yield short-term education savings ranging from $0.78 to $1.16 for every $1 invested, and long-term public savings as high as $17 for every $1 invested. By December 2007, Pre-K Counts sites had waiting lists of more than 2,200 children. Still, just 20 percent of Pennsylvania's 442,000 three- and four-year olds have access to publicly funded, high-quality pre-K programs.
As you begin the challenging task of negotiating the fiscal year 2010-2011 budget, we respectfully ask that you remember the powerful impact investments in early childhood education and care programs have on Pennsylvania's children, their families and the future of the Commonwealth.
Pennsylvania has proven itself a national leader in its investments and system building in early childhood education and care over the last five years. With your assistance, commitment, and leadership Pennsylvania will continue to have the resources to prepare its youngest children for success into the future.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
Find Your Legislator
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm